Tilly's Fanconi Test Results

[khanis]

@tanza:

And now with the test.. there is never a reason to again produce a dog with Fanconi… so really it becomes a moot point, IMO

Pat, you know that I will agree with this…
but in fact, it isn't the case... the point isn't MOOT.

After all, Tilly is only 18 months old...
which means that the litter was bred AFTER the Fanconi Linkage Test became available.
There were many Zande [UK] dogs tested that summer [2007] and many carriers… telling us that the mutant gene IS there...
if there were/are carriers, there is more than likely the disease.

Tilly's breeder's were playing russian roulette by doing such a breeding,
without health-testing the parents.
Unfortunately, you and Tilly get to pay the price for their gambling.

Best of luck to Tilly.. enjoy your years with her.

[moetmum]

Most vets don't know anything about fanconi to recognise it, back in the 80's my breeder gave me the current information at that time to alert the vet to the possibility, as I understand it if the vet doesn't recognise Fanconi the usual treatment they might try would actually make the situation worse, I am not very knowledgable on the subject, but firmly believe that we should be testing as many dogs as possible.

I know that it can be inherited, and when a dog comes back affected it may not be showing symptoms, it may not show them for many years, a bit like breast cancer where a number of the family may suffer and a person may carry the genes but not all develop it, or some not for years.

A lot of people were talking about Fanconi at WELKS and coming to their own conclusions about dogs that hadn't been tested, we will never know if they don't test. Although its sad that Tilly has come back affected at least they have got people talking about Fanconi again, and some more dogs are now being tested.

I believe that as well as being hereditary it can also be triggered by external influence one of which was antibiotics used after the expiry date, has anyone else heard of this?

[Patty]

Tanza - my dogs are all subject to a routine veterinary check every year including blood, urine, heart, eyes, etc. (Generally, the only time most of them see a vet!) It's a practice carried on from the breeder whose affix I've inherited. Also whenever I get any scientific information particular to Basenjis I pass it on to him. It's true that many vets in the UK don't know about Fanconi Syndrome.
Another question for any to answer, please - do Fanconi carriers, affected etc drink more than 'normal' Basenjis. Is this a way it could be spotted earlier on? I ask because this might be a useful piece of advice topass on to interested parties
Moetmum - fairly recently Fanconi was caused in various dogs (not only Basenjis) by eating contaminated chews (I'm not sure what the contamination was, obviously some kind of poison. Dr Gonto gave us a list of things that cause Fanconi - probably some of the others know?

[lvoss]

@Patty:

Another question for any to answer, please - do Fanconi carriers, affected etc drink more than 'normal' Basenjis. Is this a way it could be spotted earlier on?

Increased drinking is a symptom of Fanconi but is not the earliest symptom. The earliest symptom that is the easiest for an owner to detect is spilling sugar in the urine. Since this symptom can be intermittent in the very early stages of the disease it is best to several days a month.

[sharronhurlbut]

Isn't the damage to the kidneys started, once the dogs show sign of increasing water drinking?

[lvoss]

Yes, and usually fairly significant by that time.

[moetmum]

Patty it is good to have all of the dogs tested annually but they could still develop Fanconi in the interim, if it developed a month or two later than your annual check and wasn't being monitored the damage would already be done by the next annual check, if you test at least you have a good indication, what have you got to lose?

There is a problem in the UK, I was shocked at the results that were emerging, I also thought the line my dogs came from was long lived, I sincerely hope that you are right that you don't have a problem, my two had good long healthy lives but there was still a problem in the line, as has previously been stated it has been like Russian Roulette. There are no records of what Basenjis have actually succumbed to, if vets are unaware how many are misdiagnosed? We have no way of knowing for sure. It isn't fair on the dogs or prospective owners to take that risk.

[tanza]

And as already pointed out, when symptoms first start with Fanconi (spilling sugar) you may not see it every day. I remember when Jaadii started spilling… one day positive for spilling sugar in the urine, next 3 days nothing, next day a trace of sugar, then two more clear days... so easy to see in the beginning how it could be missed early on....

[khanis]

I am going to take a guess that WELKS was a big show…
the thing is.. the Fanconi research has been going on for MANY YEARS.
The test has been available going on two years [will be in early July 2009].

Since Fanconi is all over the globe, there isn't a good enough reason for UK breeders to not have begun testing. Sure, I know there is a great deal of expense shipping blood. I get that.

BUT, I have also lived with Fanconi. It is NOT pretty. If one can put the time into breeding a litter, there is absolutely NO reason NOT to fanconi test the parents with enough time to get back the results… PRIOR to the breeding. Why put the pups at risk for such a dreaded disease.

I just do not get why people in any place can bury their head in the sand and try and believe that they are not subject to something like this... when instead they could test to know what is in their bloodlines. Maybe someone can explain to me why that seems to be the chosen route in other countries.

[tanza]

And the more results that are in the database, the more information breeders have when thinking about breeding… regardless if you have pet pup... and never want to breed... it is the results that help the people that are breeding...

As I noted before...there were many that said "not in my line" as far as Fanconi, only to find out with the test that 90% of their dogs were carriers... so when breeding, they "dodged" Fanconi.. but what about that one person that might have bred to one of their dogs with another carrier?... and pop up with an affected?.... It is a credit to the breed for all those that have tested... and IMO... a cop out for those that do not test... the price of the cheek swab and test is reasonable for the future of our breed. (OK off the soapbox....)

[moetmum]

I should have explained that WELKS (West of England Ladies Kennel Society) is our first outdoor championship show of the year.

Most of the breeders in the UK are now testing, some are not convinced, it is a shame because it is decreasing the gene pool. Out of five litters this year only two sires used, in such a small numerical breed it can't be good for the future.

Before the testing one of our breeders used an affected bitch to a carrier? dog (I don't see him on the data bank, so assume he isn't tested, this was one of the other litters sired by Tilly's dad), no-one was at fault there was no way of knowing, all of the offspring at this time to my knowledge appear fit and healthy, without testing the dogs we would have no idea there was a problem. I think that if it happened now there would be a lot of unhappy people pointing fingers.

[khanis]

@tanza:

It is a credit to the breed for all those that have tested… and IMO... a cop out for those that do not test... the price of the cheek swab and test is reasonable for the future of our breed. (OK off the soapbox....)

Go ahead Pat… stand up there and keep it warm for me!

@moetmum:

Most of the breeders in the UK are now testing, some are not convinced, it is a shame because it is decreasing the gene pool. Out of five litters this year only two sires used, in such a small numerical breed it can't be good for the future.

Were those two sires tested as clear? An you are right… using only the same dogs in a small local/gene pool, it just gives way to a soon-to-occur bottleneck.

@moetmum:

Before the testing one of our breeders used an affected bitch to a carrier? dog (I don't see him on the data bank, so assume he isn't tested, this was one of the other litters sired by Tilly's dad), no-one was at fault there was no way of knowing, all of the offspring at this time to my knowledge appear fit and healthy, without testing the dogs we would have no idea there was a problem. I think that if it happened now there would be a lot of unhappy people pointing fingers.

If this was before testing… how were they to know?
You have to keep in mind in the years preceding the linkage test, many dogs, did not start to spill until well into their veteran years.
I know lots of people like to think they know the health of all the dogs they have produced and I hear it all the time.
But people move, things happen, you lose touch.

I am confused as above you mentioned another litter sired by Tilly's dad was to an affected. Was this at the same time as the litter that produced Tilly, or well-before the linkage test [meaning that the resulting pups are more than 20 months old]?

Don't cover your eyes, it IS happening now! There IS finger-pointing.
And quite frankly, these folks DESERVE to have fingers pointed at them!
Just ignoring it leads them to belive that what they are doing is OKAY and it is not okay in any way.

I, for one, would not feel any guilt at the finger-pointing when there isn't a reason for these people to be breeding so irresponsibly.

[moetmum]

There was no fault in the mating I mentioned as there was no test, Tilly is from a repeat mating from another litter produced at the time. I don't think at the time of Tilly's litter any of the previous pups from either litter had been tested, they were both lovely litters, all looking healthy, (and still looking healthy) I suppose that they thought there was no problem, they hadn't previously seen fanconi in their lines, they were sadly wrong, this is why nobody can say for sure their line is clear if none of them are tested.

Fanconi must start somewhere, are any of the dogs that have been imported from Africa coming back as carriers or affected? Or has this just mutated over the generations?

[Patty]

I don't see that there is any answer to those who breed without testing although of course that is their choice. No doubt when one of their breeding is tested and diagnosed they regret and blame themselves for not testing. But that doesn't help the people who have have been sold one of their pups who is diagnosed. In that case it's wiser to buy offspring from tested parents nowadays. I can't quite remember exactly when linked marker testing was known to be available here but I know litters have been bred since then.
Actually I've found that many people, including breeders do not really care about the breed as such. There are so many I've spoken to who really know very little and imagine that the breed started with them! - in fact a breeder once said to me that he didn't care about the past only from the time he started breeding.
Interesting to know that a symptom just crops up seemingly out of the blue - does any one know if research has been done on this? Eg. is there a common trigger? As I said before its strange to me that more research hasn't been done when Fanconi Syndrome would appear to be so rife.
Incidentally, since finding so much information on this site, I'm going through carrier's ,affected etc. pedigrees to check whether there is a common ancestor. Fairly easy here as I keep detailed pedigrees (and have done so since I learned to write!} also zande pedigree database is exceedingly helpful and saves my updating no end of time (all praise to that site).
Khanis, - WELKS is one of our champ shows but entries have traditionally been marginally lower than most of the others. We have very few entries at shows now - not even as much as 40 at many of our Champ shows. Club Champ shows are marginally better. You can see therefore, how easy it is to unearth information and how difficult it is to hide it!! I can't remember what our latest registration figure was but it was very low. There are a few breeders who breed every year but the Basenji, as I wrote before, is not, thankfully a commercial breed.
When I have bred (stopped now owing to age) it was mainly to keep the line going - I hold the oldest affix in the ring although it is one I have inherited from one of my mentors.
I do think though that testing is increasing here and I'm really quite sure that when the definitive test is established we will find that most breeders will automatically test their litters. What does concern me a bit is that some who test now seem to think that once they have had a clear litter they need not test any longer.
Comments gratefully invited.
Tanza - re pet pups, there is always the chance that accidental matings occur. That raises another question, if you know, - have there been cases of Fanconi being inherited in a mixed litter?

[Patty]

Sorry I posted the last not having realised there is a next page so I have repeated what Moetmum said.
Moetmum - I think we might be now getting into a diffiult realm here because of the only recent advent of the test - I don't feel that we should talk about specific breeders who can be easily identified, without them being on this site and able to answer back. Just a comment and I don't mean to offend.
Re imported African dogs - I believe that all the recently imported dogs were tested free of Fanconi but the rest of the forum from the USA will be able to confirm this. I don't somehow think that it came with the very early dogs but as the mutation can occur through stress it's a perfectly valid theory that uprooting them from their forests and shipping them here could have caused such stress and hence subsequent mutation. Personally because of my experience, I assume that it cropped up later than this but you never know!!!

[tanza]

There was Fanconi in the early Basenjis, it just did not have a name then and no protocol for treatment… In talking to breeders here in the US, it was just known as the kidney problem... And it has been in the US since Basenjis were introduced, as I have been told by older breeders. Of course without a name or records, one would not really know....

The newer Afs that have been introduced, the ones tested have tested clear.

[lvoss]

Lukuru Amisi tested IND.

[tanza]

@lvoss:

Lukuru Amisi tested IND.

Thanks, I forgot about that

[lvoss]

@Patty:

Interesting to know that a symptom just crops up seemingly out of the blue - does any one know if research has been done on this? Eg. is there a common trigger?

Though it may seem to us that the symptoms just crop up out of the blue in reality that is not what happens. The changes in the kidney start happening long before there are symptoms that are visible in the outward behavior or condition of the dog. As I stated before, many of the changes occur that effect blood chemistry that only specialized equipment can detect.

[EskiLovr]

@lvoss:

Though it may seem to us that the symptoms just crop up out of the blue in reality that is not what happens. The changes in the kidney start happening long before there are symptoms that are visible in the outward behavior or condition of the dog. As I stated before, many of the changes occur that effect blood chemistry that only specialized equipment can detect.

That is one of the fundamental challenges in veterinary medicine. Since animals cannot talk, they can't tell us when something is 'off' and frequently things are not noticed until the situation is pretty far along, because until the behavior or outward appearance is affected, we cannot know anything is even wrong.

My hat always goes off to the veterinarians who diagnose conditions based on such tiny amounts of information and subtle clues. Of course credit also often goes to observant owners who pay close attention to the patterns of their own animals, and note any deviance from those patterns.